A major new
campaign to end the use of monkeys in European laboratories has been
launched today in Turin, Italy. It took place at the Unione Culturale Franco
Antonicelli, Via C.Battisti 4b, Turin at 11 a.m.

The event was open
to the press and the public and included a screening of the documentary
'Save the Primates' unveiling what the campaigners hope will be the biggest
awareness drive on the use of primates in experimentation that Italy has
ever seen.

Representatives from ADI and AgireOra hosted the campaign
launch and Massimo Tettamanti, an expert in alternative methods to animal
testing, and Elena Baistrocchi, a primatologist at Firenze University, also
spoke at the event.

The screening of the hard hitting 'Save the
Primates' documentary showed:Wild monkeys being trapped for experiments
Inside a laboratory monkey supplier's premisesExperiments being
performed on conscious monkeysExamples of modern alternatives to animal
experiments

New campaign materials launched by ADI and AgireOra
include:Postcards which will be distributed throughout ItalyA new
petition which will be distributed and is available onlineCopies of the
Save the Primates DVDInformation sheets and reports for an awareness
drive

The campaign aims to increase pressure on the Council of
Ministers who are currently considering Europe-wide rules on animal
experiments. The European Commission have proposed restrictions of primate
experiments and a crackdown on the wild capture of primates by dealers
supplying European laboratories. Campaigners will be calling on the Italian
Government to strengthen these measures at the Council of Ministers.

More than 2000 ADI/AgireOra postcards asking the Italian Government to take
action for animals in laboratories have already been distributed in Italy in
just three days.

The following examples illustrate the pain and
suffering inflicted on animals in Italian laboratories:

Research at the
Universite; di Bologna, Bologna involved using two macaque monkeys in a task
to test the activation in one area of the brain in grasping and pointing
tasks(1). Following training to carry out the tasks over five months, the
primates underwent surgery to insert head restrainers and recording chambers
into monkeys' skulls. The animals were then restrained by the head and made
to carry out the tasks in the dark.

The authors of the study
acknowledge that this data is in agreement with that gained from humans
making this experiment both unscientific and unnecessary.

Elsewhere
at the University of Bari, Valenzano, researchers used goats in an
experiment as a model to test a drug to treat herpes(2). Animals were
infected vaginally with herpes and different groups were treated at
different points post-infection. Some of the goats suffered swelling and
lesions on their genital areas and the authors reported that the animals
showed signs of pain when being swabbed.

This experiment had
previously been carried out over a decade ago in humans and its findings
were positive so this recent research was a clear waste of animal lives and
resources.

ADI and AgireOra plan to increase political support by
engaging the Italian people in this debate with petitions in city centres,
online and a special postcard campaign.

Helder Constantino, ADI
Campaigner, said: "As the Council of Ministers considers Europe-wide rules
on animal experiments, this is a real opportunity to set Europe on a course
to end the use of primates in experiments. Our film shows shocked,
frightened wild monkeys being stripped from the trees and destined for use
in labs, the grim conditions that monkeys endure in centres which sell
primates for research and also the horrific experiments these animals are
subjected to. We urge people to visit our website to see the evidence for
themselves and then send a message to the European Parliament and Council of
Ministers asking them to act to stop primates suffering."

Marina
Berati, coordinator of AgireOra Network, said: "Life behind the closed doors
of these testing facilities is harsh and disturbing for the animals. We hope
our campaign will encourage the public to take an active stand against this
cruelty by writing letters and protesting against animal maltreatment. The
animals can not speak for themselves so they need to be defended and the EU
must act now."

About Animal Defenders International:Animal Defenders International exists to
educate, create awareness and alleviate the suffering of animals and works
to protect wildlife and the environment. ADI lobbies governments for
measures to protect animals and the environment, and organises the rescue of
animals in distress. In 2007, ADI secured the adoption of Written
Declaration 40/2007 by the European Parliament calling for an end to the use
of apes and wild caught monkeys in experiments and for timetable to phase
out all experiments on monkeys. The European Commission proposals currently
under consideration are a response to this Declaration. ADI has offices in
London, San Francisco and Bogota, has representatives in many countries and
works with partner organisations all over the world.
www.ad-international.org

About AgireOra:AgireOra
Network is a set of initiatives, campaigns, projects and consultations aimed
at defending animals. This includes all animals, without any species
distinction, as its logo emphasizes: a human hand which is making a pact of
help and friendship with a dog's paw (to symbolize companion animals) and a
cow's hoof (to symbolize farm animals and in general all animals "used" by
humans).

AgireOra Network works to circulate information and to encourage
animal rights activism. These are the two areas of the project: providing
information to educate those who "do not know" about these issues and
encourage activism in those who are aware and want to take a stand to help
animals.

AgireOra is based in Turin and is active all over Italy, thanks
to a network of activists in daily contact via the Internet.